Russia and China warn against 'chaos and war' on Korean Peninsula

The UN Security Council holds an emergency session related to the most recent missile launch of the DPRKю The North Korean missile, Hwasong-12, flew through the territory of Japan for the first time in decades. Members of the Security Council intend to condemn the actions of North Korea, but the matter will not come down to sanctions.

Many observers note that the DPRK launched the missile at a time when Japan and the United States hold large-scale exercises near its borders. The DPRK set out a protest against the drills claiming that the manoeuvres are held as preparations for a military invasion of Pyongyang. The North Korean leadership appealed to the UN Security Council and called actions of the United States "provocative."

Washington hopes that Russia and China will show their support for the decision about the situation surrounding North Korea's new missile launch, US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley said. Haley also stressed that North Korea violated all previously adopted resolutions of the UN Security Council. Therefore, the international community should unite against North Korea, she said.

The North Korean authorities confirmed that they had tested the Hwasong-12 medium-range ballistic missile. Kim Jong-un himself was present during the launch, Yonhap news agency said. Kim Jong-un said later that the latest missile launch of North Korea was a "prelude" to Pyongyang's attack on the American island of Guam in the Pacific Ocean. In the statement, Pyongyang stressed that it was Hwasong-12 missile used for the launch. The missile went on a specified flight path and struck the target in the Pacific Ocean. The message from North Korea also said that the launch did not affect the security of neighbouring countries.

The UN Security Council called Pyongyang's actions "outrageous" and demanded missile tests be stopped. At the same time, the UN Security Council expressed "its commitment to a peaceful, diplomatic and political solution to the conflict."

The Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the United Nations, Vasily Nebenzya, urged the DPRK "to implement resolutions of the UN Security Council in their entirety." "Pyongyang should curtail the prohibited programs and reinstate the regime of nonproliferation and control of the IAEA and join the convention on the prohibition of chemical weapons," the Russian diplomat said at the meeting.

Nebenzya believes that military operations should not be used to accomplish the goal. "We believe that all further decisions of the UN Security Council regarding the DPRK should clearly indicate this circumstance. Additional unilateral sanctions other than those adopted by the Council itself should be excluded," the diplomat added.

Chinese representative also spoke about the need not to resort to sanctions. Liu Jieyi stated the deployment of the US THAAD missile defence system in South Korea should be stopped. The Chinese official also spoke against "chaos or war" on the Korean Peninsula.

North Korea (the DPRK) launched a Hwasong-12 intercontinental ballistic missile that flew across the territory of Japan. According to Japanese self-defence forces, the missile flew a distance of 2,700 km, reaching a maximum flight altitude of 550 km. Since 1998, Hwasong-12 was the first missile of North Korea that reached Japanese airspace.

Japanese officials stated that the missile passed over the northern part of Tohoku region on Honshu Island. According to the United States, the missile went further north - through the island of Hokkaido. The Japanese did not attempt to shoot down the missile, possibly considering that it did not pose a threat.